Ruling the Historical Romance Novel as the Female Supporting Character-Chapter 261: She Can Actually Get a Special Merit?

Su Yijia had always thought Qin Kaize’s cooking was good, but nothing extraordinary. However, when he blew on the braised veal to cool it and placed it into her mouth, the soft, tender meat, brimming with juices and rich flavors, made her eyes crinkle with delight.

"Mmm, so delicious," she said, swallowing the bite before eagerly leaning in again, her mouth wide open. "More!"

Qin Kaize’s throat bobbed as he swallowed hard, his gaze flicking to Gao Huabin, who was still laboriously shucking oysters in the background. A faint annoyance stirred within him, but he pushed aside his thoughts, focusing on his wife’s satisfaction.

Using clean chopsticks, he picked up another piece of veal, gently blowing on it before feeding it to her again.

Seeing how much his little wife enjoyed the meal, a satisfied smile tugged at his lips. "Alright, go wash your hands now. I’ll just stir-fry some shredded pork with green peppers and garlic lettuce, and we’ll be ready to eat."

"Garlic lettuce with oyster sauce sounds delicious," Su Yijia said, her mouth watering at the thought. But when she looked over at the pile of oysters, less than a quarter of them had been shucked. "Let me help with the oysters," she suggested, eager to finish so they could start making the oyster sauce.

"No way," Qin Kaize responded firmly, glancing at Su Yijia’s soft, delicate hands. Her slender fingers, like freshly peeled spring onions, glowed with a dewy, smooth sheen. "The oyster shells are sharp and brittle. Your hands are too tender--you’ll end up with cuts all over."

Su Yijia looked down at her hands. After washing all those threadfin fish, her hands had become even softer, almost like silken tofu--one touch and they seemed like they’d bruise.

She sighed inwardly. It seemed like she should cut back on using the spiritual spring water in the future, silently reminding herself to be more careful.

Every woman wishes to be as beautiful as possible. However, with the rapid economic growth and the rise of countless influential figures, Su Yijia understood that there’s always someone better. She didn’t want her looks to bring unnecessary trouble. A moderate amount of beauty could be an asset, but excessive beauty could easily become a disaster.

With this in mind, Su Yijia didn’t insist on helping further, but she also didn’t leave the kitchen. Instead, she stayed close to Qin Kaize, watching as he skillfully stir-fried the dishes, handing him clean plates as needed. The space was small, and with both of them pressed together, it was undeniably a bit cramped. Yet, for two people so deeply in love, even brushing against each other felt sweet rather than bothersome.

When all the dishes were finished, Qin Kaize wouldn’t let her carry them. He took them to the living room himself, and Su Yijia trailed behind like a little shadow, her affection palpable in her every move. She was about to follow him back to the kitchen when Xia Weiguo walked in, leading a couple of men carrying bags.

"Jiajia, wait, I have something to talk to you about," he called out, waving her over.

Su Yijia stopped and turned to him, noticing that the two guards behind him were holding electric fans--four in total. It looked like he intended to put one in each room, which did seem a bit showy. However, she knew Xia Weiguo wouldn’t have just bought fans for her and Kaize while ignoring her grandparents. If he had only bought two, Jiajia and Kaize would have surely given them away. If he’d bought just three, it would seem like he was deliberately leaving out Gao Huabin.

This way, it was less trouble for everyone. After all, Xia Weiguo hadn’t spent much money on himself in the past two decades, so splurging a little now wouldn’t be a big deal.

Once the guards set down the fans and left, Xia Weiguo sat on the couch and waved for Su Yijia to join him.

When Su Yijia sat down on the stool opposite Xia Weiguo, he pushed a newspaper-wrapped, brick-like object toward her.

"The team used a total of 26 pills of the Great Strength Pills. I applied for 1,000 yuan per pill, so here’s 26,000 yuan in total. On top of that, you earned a 10,000 yuan bonus for your outstanding contribution. However, since we haven’t caught everyone hiding in the shadows, your commendation won’t be publicly announced for now. Your medal and certificate of honor are in here. Take a look," Xia Weiguo said, his tone brimming with pride. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

He had always known that Qin Kaize was exceptional, but he hadn’t expected that his daughter-in-law would be just as remarkable.

"Thank you, Uncle Xia." Su Yijia hadn’t expected the price of the pills to increase, and she was overjoyed. After all, she had been spending money for so long without earning a cent, so she had started to feel a bit uneasy.

She carefully unwrapped the newspaper, revealing stacks of cash. The medal looked different from the one she had received last time--this one seemed even more impressive. As she flipped through the certificate, the bold red characters for "First-Class Merit" caught her eye, making her pupils widen in shock.

"Uncle Xia, is this a mistake?"

"No mistake. You risked your life to retrieve that document and provided us with critical information. Not only did you prevent casualties on our side, but you also protected all the villagers. Twice on your journey, you saved everyone’s lives. Plus, your Great Strength Pills has given our team 26 specially trained individuals. With these three contributions combined, this medal of merit is well-earned. If anything, we should have given you more," Xia Weiguo replied, his anger rising at the thought of those who had tried to downplay her contributions. They had even suggested withholding the commendation until she handed over the pill formula--shameless!

"Grandpa, Grandma, look! I earned another commendation!" Su Yijia’s smile was so wide that her eyes narrowed into crescent moons. She proudly held up the certificate and medal for her grandparents to see.

The bold characters for the First-Class Merit didn’t bring the joy one might expect to Grandpa Lin and Grandma Lin. Instead, their faces briefly stiffened before quickly shifting into expressions of pride.

"Our Jiajia is amazing."

Yet, deep down, they wished their granddaughter hadn’t earned such honors. From the time she left for Yun Province until her return, danger had never been far behind. No award or commendation could ever compare to the importance of her safety.

Su Yijia gently touched the medal in her hand and sighed.

"What’s wrong?" Qin Kaize walked out carrying two plates, his voice filled with concern.

Gao Huabin, following behind him with a bowl of soup, immediately glanced at the medal in Su Yijia’s hand and couldn’t help but show a look of envy. He had earned medals during missions, but none as prestigious as the one in his sister-in-law’s hand. But she had accomplished something monumental, surviving life-or-death challenges all on her own. Unlike him, who had always followed the lead of his captain, with the most dangerous tasks left to Qin Kaize. And the 26 comrades they brought along this time had been carefully selected, so it made sense that her medal would be top-class.

"I just think a medal like this would look best pinned on a military uniform. It’s a shame I don’t have one," Su Yijia said, holding the medal up to her chest and imagining what it would look like pinned there. She had always admired the heroes she saw on TV with their chests full of medals, thinking they looked especially impressive. It was probably why she had been so utterly captivated by Qin Kaize when she first saw him in uniform at their wedding.

"Sis-in-law, you’re still young! You can still enlist," Gao Huabin suggested, as if it were the most natural thing.

"No!" came the unanimous reply from all four people in the room.

"Jiajia is a delicate young lady--how could she handle the hardships of military life?" Xia Weiguo said sternly, casting a cold glance at Gao Huabin.

Qin Kaize’s expression turned even darker, as if he were ready to give Gao Huabin a beating right there.

"I was just saying it casually, I didn’t actually mean she should enlist," Gao Huabin quickly explained, feeling the weight of their stares. He had only meant that wearing a military uniform and earning a medal wasn’t that difficult.

Grandma Lin forced a small smile, her face momentarily stiffening. "Our Jiajia is delicate and fragile; she couldn’t handle such hardships. Besides, we’re both getting old, and we don’t have many years left. All we hope for is to live peacefully with our granddaughter. It might sound selfish, but we don’t want her facing any more danger."